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en21 Binge-Worthy Facts About 'Orange Is The New Black'http://mentalfloss.com/article/63714/21-binge-worthy-facts-about-orange-new-black
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/tv" class="author-writes-about-link">tv</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/oitnb_0.jpg" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">JoJo Whilden / Netflix</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>The <em>Orange is the New Black </em>season three premiere is right around the corner (that's June 12, for those of you who haven’t already marked your calendars). Before you sit down to binge watch, get to know Piper, Alex, and Crazy Eyes even better with these facts about what goes on behind the scenes of Litchfield Penitentiary.</p>
<h4>1. Competition for rights to Piper Kerman's memoir was stiff.</h4>
<p>Jenji Kohan, who was already well-known for creating <em>Weeds</em>, read Kerman's memoir and thought it would be perfect for a TV show adaptation. <a href="http://www.npr.org/2013/08/13/211639989/orange-creator-jenji-kohan-piper-was-my-trojan-horse" target="_blank">According to</a> Kohan:</p>
<blockquote><p>I'm always looking for those places where you can slam really disparate people up against one another, and they have to deal with each other. There are very few crossroads anymore. We talk about this country as this big melting pot, but it's a mosaic. There's all these pieces, they're next to each other, they're not necessarily mixing. And I'm looking for those spaces where people actually do mix—and prison just happens to be a terrific one.</p>
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<p>She wasn’t the only one who wanted to adapt it. She <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2013/07/12/orange-is-the-new-black-jenji-kohan-talks" target="_blank">had</a> to call Kerman and “beg” her for the rights. Kerman was particularly impressed with Kohan’s devotion to telling the story properly <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/popcandy/2014/05/12/orange-is-the-new-black-dvd/8992353/" target="_blank">as</a> “she asked [her] question after question after question.”</p>
<h4>2. Kohan always had big plans for the show's other characters.</h4>
<p>Kohan knew that Piper (played by Taylor Schilling) would appeal to network execs, but she wanted to go much deeper than that story. "In a lot of ways Piper was my Trojan Horse,” <a href="http://www.npr.org/2013/08/13/211639989/orange-creator-jenji-kohan-piper-was-my-trojan-horse" target="_blank">said</a> Kohan. “You're not going to go into a network and sell a show on really fascinating tales of black women, and Latina women, and old women and criminals. But if you take this white girl, this sort of fish out of water, and you follow her in, you can then expand your world and tell all of those other stories. But it's a hard sell to just go in and try to sell those stories initially.”</p>
<h4>3. The real-life Alex Vause has spoken out about what really went down.</h4>
<p>Catherine Wolters, the inspiration for Alex, <a href="http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2014/04/orange-is-the-new-black-real-alex" target="_blank">has</a> claimed that the show gets a lot wrong when it comes to Alex and Piper's relationship. The two had already been involved in the trafficking business long before they met each other, according to Wolters. She also said that their relationship definitely didn’t carry over to prison, where they only spent around five weeks in the same facility. But, Wolters admitted that making the show about their real relationship would be “so wretched and stinky, it would quite possibly result in a collapsed universe. So I guess it’s a good thing Piper and Jenji stick with the fun little tidbits.”</p>
<h4>4. Laura Prepon originally auditioned for Piper.</h4>
<p>The show’s casting director Jen Euston and Kohan <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/emilyorley/how-the-orange-is-the-new-black-cast-came-to-be#.swjgk6gOD" target="_blank">agreed</a> <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/orange-is-new-black-casting-723404" target="_blank">that</a> Prepon was too composed and confident to play neurotic Piper. They didn’t believe that the audience would worry for her in the role. From then on, the two designed Alex around Prepon—including the character’s glasses and black hair.</p>
<h4>5. Uzo Aduba was about to quit acting when she got cast.</h4>
<p>Aduba also auditioned for a different role before she was offered the part of Crazy Eyes. The former Boston University sprinter (<a href="http://xgames.espn.go.com/xgames/espnw/athletes-life/article/12680538/boston-marathon-not-sprint-ex-bu-runner-oitnb-star-uzo-aduba" target="_blank">and marathoner</a>) <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/orange-is-new-black-casting-723404" target="_blank">came</a> in and read for Janae, the track star. Frustrated that she hadn't heard back, she <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/19/uzo-aduba-orange-is-the-new-black_n_6354838.html" target="_blank">decided</a> to quit acting and go to law school instead. Little did she know that Kohan thought she’d be perfect for a different part: the very same day she "quit" acting, Aduba was offered the part of Crazy Eyes.</p>
<h4>6. Aduba taps into her inner child to play Crazy Eyes.</h4>
<p>In the first script, Aduba <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrPU0GUCuQ8" target="_blank">claimed</a> that Crazy Eyes was described as “innocent like a child, except children aren’t scary.” She used that description to develop her character’s distinctive persona and mannerisms. As Aduba put it, “That felt like the key to the door that might open this character because someone who is innocent like a child, to me, meant somebody who operates out of impulse … who acts and then thinks. Children don’t have agendas. They’re not calculating.”</p>
<h4>7. Taryn Manning researched different religious groups to play Pennsatucky.</h4>
<p>Manning went through and watched a number of documentaries about religious groups, <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2013/07/orange-is-the-new-black-taryn-manning-interview.html" target="_blank">including</a> <em>Jesus Camp </em>and <em>The Wild and</em> <em>Wonderful Whites of West Virginia</em>. She also spent time studying YouTube videos of faith healing and other evangelist rituals.</p>
<h4>8. Kerman continues to give notes for the show.</h4>
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<p>Though they've deviated from the stories Kerman recounts in her memoir, Kohan still looks to her for advice. <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2013/07/12/orange-is-the-new-black-jenji-kohan-talks" target="_blank">According to</a> the showrunner, “She gives notes, mostly about accuracy. You know, ‘I don’t think that would happen.’ And she comes to set for visits, which must be strange for her. But she’s really kind of trusted us with her baby and we really, completely took off from where she started.”</p>
<h4>9. The writers visited a real women’s prison.</h4>
<p>Kohan and her writing staff <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2013/07/12/orange-is-the-new-black-jenji-kohan-talks" target="_blank">paid</a> a visit to Chino Prison in California. Kohan also spoke with the prison’s warden, who explained how social groups tend to form in women’s prisons and men’s prisons. He told her that women are, generally speaking, more communal and seek out groups, rather than spending their time alone.</p>
<h4>10. Regina Spektor wrote the theme song specifically for the show.</h4>
<p>Spektor and Kohan had already <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/regina-spektor-my-orange-is-the-new-black-theme-really-fits-20130801" target="_blank">collaborated</a> a couple of times. (Spektor did a cover of “Little Boxes” for the opening of an episode of <em>Weeds</em>.) Because of their solid working relationship, Kohan reached out to her and asked if she’d write the theme song for <em>Orange Is the New Black</em>. In order to write it, Spektor was sent a few unfinished episodes in the middle of season one filming. She has said that seeing the characters come to life helped her put together a finished version of the song.</p>
<h4>11. Those are real former prisoners in the opening credits.</h4>
<p>Kohan <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/20/orange-is-the-new-black-opening-credits_n_3786127.html" target="_blank">hired</a> non-actresses to pose for the opening credit sequence—all of them formerly incarcerated women. In order to get the right facial expressions, the women were asked to visualize three things: “a peaceful place,” “a person who makes you laugh,” and finally, “something that you want to forget.”</p>
<h4>12. The costume designer has to get creative.</h4>
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<p>Costume designer Jenn Rogien <a href="http://news.instyle.com/2013/07/23/orange-is-the-new-black-costume-designer-jenn-rogien/" target="_blank">has</a> described the job of dressing the inmates as “a creative challenge.” She must use real prison uniforms—either orange or beige—without altering anything too dramatically, unless the alterations are things a prisoner could have done herself. Rogien has to rely on subtle touches that serve to set the characters apart, such as rolled sleeves or hems. Her time to really shine comes during the <a href="http://style.mtv.com/2014/06/24/orange-is-the-new-black-season-2-jenn-rogien/" target="_blank">flashback scenes</a>, set in various decades and places. Rogien sees those as an opportunity to not only define the characters, but to “highlight the contrast between the world inside and the world outside.”</p>
<h4>13. There’s an <em>American Pie </em>reference in the pilot.</h4>
<p>Given that both Jason Biggs and Natasha Lyonne were in <em>American Pie</em>, the writers couldn’t resist sneaking in a reference or two. In the pilot, Larry complains to Piper that he tells her everything: "The web-cam horror, the penis shaving incident ...", which are both things that happen to his character Jim in the 1999 comedy. In a later episode, Lyonne’s Nicky tells Red, “I thought I was, like, your Spock.” This is a nod to Mulgrew's stint playing Captain Kathryn Janeway on <em>Star Trek: Voyager</em>.</p>
<h4>14. Laverne Cox’s brother plays Sophia pre-transition.</h4>
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<p>Cox's twin brother, musician M. Lamar, <a href="http://posturemag.com/online/2014/09/12/laverne-cox-and-twin-brother-m-lamar-get-personal-at-baruch-colleges-genderfluid-week/" target="_blank">stepped</a> in to play a pre-transition Sophia in one episode. The casting director auditioned a ton of actors before she discovered that Cox even had a twin. "S<span>he insisted that he should audition for the role," <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/26/orange-is-the-new-black-laverne-cox_n_3660712.html" target="_blank">Cox said</a>. "He auditioned, and he got the part."</span></p>
<h4>15. Jodie Foster has directed two episodes.</h4>
<p>And Foster <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/jodie-foster-why-she-wanted-709132" target="_blank">was</a> the one who pursued the gig. After reading the book, she asked her agent if she could somehow get involved. The Oscar winner ended up directing season one, episode three, and the season two pilot.</p>
<h4>16. The cast and crew like working on a show that they know people will eventually binge-watch.</h4>
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<p>The people behind <em>Orange Is The New Black </em>are well aware that you’re going to binge watch their show, and they've even adapted their production process accordingly. For instance, Kohan <a href="http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/lists/2014/03/10-things-we-learned-from-the-orange-is-the-new-black-cast-at-paleyfest-2014.html" target="_blank">doesn't</a> worry as much about writing each character into every single episode because she knows that the audience doesn’t have to wait a full week for the next installment featuring their favorites.</p>
<p>From a professional standpoint, Schilling enjoys knowing that the audience is binge-watching her. "As an actor doing regular TV, if there's a really special scene you did, in like episode five or eight, this way the people are more likely to see it, rather than drop out after a month and miss it," she <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2014/jun/01/taylor-schilling-orange-is-the-new-black" target="_blank">has said</a>. "It's more like theater in terms of immediacy and rapid response, and gratification for the actors."</p>
<h4>17. Litchfield is a real place—but its women's prison is not.</h4>
<p>The show is set in Litchfield Penitentiary in upstate New York—however, there's no women's prison in the real Litchfield. (In real life, Kerman served her time at FCI Danbury in Danbury, Connecticut.)</p>
<h4>18. Lorraine Toussaint had no idea her character was going to be so evil.</h4>
<p>Toussaint didn’t <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2014/06/orange-is-the-new-black-lorraine-toussaint-vee-nudity.html" target="_blank">meet</a> Kohan until her very first day on set, when she decided to pick the showrunner's brain about the inmate she was about to play. “I had some basic questions I needed answered so I could at least finish out that first day,” Toussaint later recalled. “Somewhere in the conversation was an ‘Oh, by the way, she’s a sociopath.’ I said, ‘Huh? Really? Um …’ and she said, ‘Oh, yes, a bona-fide, complete and absolute sociopath.’ I thought, Oh! I wish I had known that! I might have thought twice about this.”</p>
<h4>19. Filming Vee's attack on Red was challenging.<br />
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<p>The actresses in that scene have cited it as one of the most difficult to film. In order for the scene to work, Mulgrew had to be harnessed to a heavy camera so that Toussaint could also be in the shot and get very close to Mulgrew’s face. As Mulgrew <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2014/06/23/orange-is-the-new-black-interviews" target="_blank">explained</a>, “You can easily be hurt if you don’t know what you’re doing, and this was perilously close.”</p>
<h4>20. Larry is not returning for season three.</h4>
<p>Larry won't appear in season three—but this could be a temporary change, along the lines of Laura Prepon’s limited role in season two. Biggs,<a href="http://www.bustle.com/articles/72469-jason-biggs-reveals-why-larry-wont-be-in-orange-is-the-new-black-season-3" target="_blank"> for his part</a>, isn't stressed about it: “They have a lot of characters to service on that show and, at the end of the day, it’s a women’s prison show. Larry is not a woman or in prison. But the good news is with a show like that, there’s always the possibility that he could come back. And I would go back in a heartbeat.”</p>
<h4>21. The show has been renewed for a fourth season—and Kohan has no plans to stop there.</h4>
<p>Kohan doesn't feel limited by the series' prison setting in the slightest. As she <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2014/04/23/orange-is-the-new-black-netflix-cover" target="_blank">has</a> explained, “If I could keep cycling people through and bringing in new people, the show could go on forever. We could do something in the <em>ER</em> or <em>Grey’s Anatomy</em> model.”</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">June 11, 2015 - 6:00pm</span></span>
</span>Thu, 11 Jun 2015 22:00:00 +0000Rebecca OConnell63714 at http://mentalfloss.com20 Things You Might Not Know About 'The Mindy Project'http://mentalfloss.com/article/60368/20-things-you-might-not-know-about-mindy-project
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/pop-culture" class="author-writes-about-link">Pop Culture</a>, <a href="/section/tv" class="author-writes-about-link">tv</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/the-mindy-project-thumb_1.jpg" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Fox</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Mindy Kaling finished her run on <em>The Office</em> in 2012. Her own show, <em>The Mindy Project,</em> premiered a few months later. Although it was recently canceled after three seasons, the series and its beloved star still have a major fan following. Perhaps as a result <a href="http://time.com/3849999/mindy-project-cancelled/" target="_blank">of the Twitter outrage</a> over Fox's decision to give it the axe, Universal Television <a href="http://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/tv/coming-soon-to-hulu-seinfeld-empire-maybe-mindy/" target="_blank">is in talks</a> to bring season four to Hulu. But for now, they're just that—talks. Which means you've got plenty of time to catch up on seasons one, two, and three, and study these fun facts about everyone's favorite fictional gynecologist.</p>
<h4>1. It could have been an NBC series.</h4>
<p>Kaling originally <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2013/mar/22/mindy-kaling-office-mindy-project" target="_blank">developed</a> the pilot for NBC, which had aired <em>The Office</em>. They passed before Fox swooped in and picked up <em>The Mindy Project</em> for 24 episodes in 2012.</p>
<h4>2. It broke boundaries.</h4>
<p><em>The Mindy Project</em> was only one of a few TV shows in history to have as its star <a href="http://deadline.com/2014/06/mindy-kaling-emmy-interview-mindy-project-fox-787028/" target="_blank">and be run by</a> a woman of color.</p>
<h4>3. It was inspired by the gig that made Kaling famous.</h4>
<p>The relationships on <em>The Mindy Project</em> were directly influenced by those on <em>The Office</em>, according to Kaling. She explained her thought process in a chat with <em><a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2012/09/25/mindy-kaling-mindy-project-the-office" target="_blank">Entertainment Weekly</a></em>: </p>
<blockquote><p>It is a reaction to 'The Office' in terms of the way it’s shot, and also the main central love story. In '<em>The Office'</em> were Jim and Pam, characters that are so deeply good and in many ways don’t have a ton of flaws. But they were so compatible that in many ways maybe their personalities overlapped with each other’s. And I love that '<em>Much Ado About Nothing</em>,' passionate, smart fighting. I love fighting with guys, and that’s something that I don’t get to see: arguing at a high level with a member of the opposite sex. That didn’t really happen that much on '<em>The Office</em>.'</p>
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<h4>4. <em>The Mindy Project</em> wasn't its working title.</h4>
<p>The show <a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/09/25/mindy-kaling-mindy-project-the-office/" target="_blank">was</a> originally called <em>It’s Messy</em>.</p>
<h4>5. Kaling was also inspired by her late mother.</h4>
<p>Kaling decided to set the show in a gynecologist's office because her mother, Swati, was an OB-GYN.</p>
<h4>6. Kaling knew exactly who she wanted to be her leading man.</h4>
<p>The role of Danny was written for Chris Messina, who Kaling knew through <em>The Office</em>’s John Krasinski. Kaling has said she “[finds] him so watchable. One of the highlights of this whole process is working with him. He’s like an old-fashioned movie star, so appealing and masculine.”</p>
<h4>7. She was also set on making Ike Barinholtz part of the cast.</h4>
<p>Ike Barinholtz <a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-09-11/entertainment/ct-ent-0912-fall-preview-tv-profile-20120911_1_madtv-sketch-comedy-mindy-project" target="_blank">had</a> auditioned for the part of Danny. He was then hired as a writer before his character, Morgan, came to be. He <a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/465263" target="_blank">said</a> that when Kaling met him, she instantly told him that she wanted him to be on the show. Barinholtz figured it would be a part like “the kindly janitor you would see every fifth episode.” It turned out Kaling had a scene written for him on the first day—he jumped right in without having to audition for Morgan.</p>
<h4>8. Ed Weeks' British accent almost didn't make it to the small screen.</h4>
<p>The part of Dr. Jeremy Reed was written for an American. Ed Weeks <a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/465263" target="_blank">planned</a> to audition using an American accent, but his roommate convinced him to use his natural, British accent.</p>
<h4>9. The show's opening credits were originally going to be animated.</h4>
<p>Scenes from Mindy Lahiri's life were <a href="http://www.glamour.com/entertainment/blogs/obsessed/2014/07/tell-us-should-the-mindy-proje" target="_blank">drawn by the artist</a> Henry John.</p>
<h4>10. Jesse Novak wrote the theme song.</h4>
<p>A composer, Novak is also the brother of Kaling’s former <em>Office</em> co-star, B.J. Novak. And that’s actually Kaling you hear <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HarfyFwRfhA" target="_blank">in the opening credits</a>. She recorded her voice, which they <a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/465263" target="_blank">arranged</a> into the tune.</p>
<h4>11. B.J. got involved, too.</h4>
<p>Novak has starred in three episodes, directed two, and executive produced twenty-five. Kaling and Novak actually <a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/01/29/bj-novak-mindy-project-the-office/" target="_blank">co-wrote</a> the season one episode, “Harry and Sally.” According to Novak, “She wrote a very basic draft—like, half an outline—and then I filled it in. And then we got together and discussed it with the rest of the writers.”</p>
<h4>12. Kaling wanted her stars to look real.</h4>
<p>Kaling <a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-09-11/entertainment/ct-ent-0912-fall-preview-tv-profile-20120911_1_madtv-sketch-comedy-mindy-project/2" target="_blank">asked</a> Barinholtz to refrain from being “like every other guy on TV who, when they get a part, instantly loses 50 pounds.” So, he made an effort to gain some weight for the role.</p>
<h4>13. Its early cast shifted around. A lot.</h4>
<p>The show made headlines early on for its constantly changing cast. Anna Camp originally played Mindy’s best friend, Gwen. And former <em>Gossip Girl</em> star Amanda Setton appeared as the office receptionist, Shauna. A couple months into the first season, Camp was downgraded from series regular to recurring and Setton <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2012/11/mindy-project-amanda-setton-anna-camp.html" target="_blank">disappeared</a> from the show altogether. By the end of the season, Camp was gone as well. Kaling <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2013/01/mindy-kaling-on-the-changes-to-the-mindy-project.html" target="_blank">mentioned</a> in early 2013 that Camp had asked for more time to audition for other roles. Then, Adam Pally joined the show for season two. After his show <em>Happy Endings</em> got canceled, Kaling <a href="http://www.accesshollywood.com/the-mindy-project-qanda-adam-pally-on-joining-fox-comedy-is-a-romance-brewing-with-dr-l_article_84991" target="_blank">called</a> him and offered him the part of Peter.</p>
<h4>14. Some people were upset by Mindy's taste in men.</h4>
<p>The show has also caught some flack for not casting a more diverse group of men to date Dr. Lahiri. The group Media Action Network for Asian-Americans <a href="http://deadline.com/2014/03/paleyfest-the-mindy-project-cast-discusses-the-kiss-and-james-franco-704340/" target="_blank">wrote</a> a letter to Fox, stating, “We are concerned that in the course of two seasons, her character, Dr. Lahiri, has had a ‘white-only’ dating policy involving about a dozen men.” Of such criticism, Kaling has said, “Do people really wonder on other shows if female leads are dating multicultural people? Like I owe it to every race and minority and beleaguered person. I have to become the United Nations of shows?”</p>
<h4>15. Improv was encouraged on set.</h4>
<p>The showrunners <a href="http://splash.suntimes.com/2014/09/12/ike-barinholtz-homegrown-humor/" target="_blank">were</a> generally open to improvisation, allowing improvised takes for every scene while filming certain episodes. <a href="http://tvline.com/2014/09/23/the-mindy-project-season-3-rhea-perlman-dannys-mother/" target="_blank">According to</a> Rhea Perlman, who played Danny’s mother, it worked well because there were so many writer-performers on the show.</p>
<h4>16. Perlman wasn't the only high-profile guest star.</h4>
<p><em>Scandal</em> and <em>Grey’s Anatomy</em> executive producer Shonda Rhimes played herself. When Rhimes got the gig, she tweeted, “Shh. Nobody tell <a href="https://twitter.com/mindykaling" target="_blank">@mindykaling</a> that I can neither act nor appear lifelike on camera. NO ONE STOP THIS FROM HAPPENING! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dreamsDOcometrue?src=hash" target="_blank">#dreamsDOcometrue</a>.” After filming, she <a href="http://www.zap2it.com/blogs/shonda_rhimes_the_mindy_project_umami_burger_thank_you-2014-09" target="_blank">sent</a> an Umami Burger truck to set with a note that read, “Thank you for enduring my incredibly horrible acting. You are all amazing to work with.”</p>
<p>Another famous guest star, James Franco, was most interested in Beth Grant, who plays abrasive nurse Beverly. Kaling <a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/03/26/mindy-project-paleyfest-panel/" target="_blank">recalls </a>Franco showing up to set, "[and] we were trying to make small talk with him. It’s impossible to make small talk with James Franco. But when he saw Beth, he lit up.”</p>
<h4>17. Fans questioned the Mindy-Danny pairing.</h4>
<p>Viewers were concerned about Kaling's decision to have the coworkers get together so early in the show’s run. Unlike many sitcoms, there weren't seasons of buildup. Barinholtz claims the move had to do with <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2014/04/15/the-mindy-project-breakup-scene" target="_blank">the characters’ ages</a>: </p>
<blockquote><p>This isn’t Gossip Girl. These are not, like, super young teenage kids. These are professional doctors who are in their early- to late-40s and to kind of tease it out too long seemed a little unrealistic, you know? Watching them together is so fun that there was a little bit of back and forth last season in the writers room—should it happen? Should it not happen? But then eventually you just get to a certain point where we want it, the fans want it, the characters want it.</p>
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<h4>18. Kaling didn't think Lahiri was responsible enough for a dog.</h4>
<p>Kaling <a href="http://www.glamour.com/entertainment/blogs/obsessed/2014/06/mindy-kaling-mindy-project-season-3" target="_blank">joked</a> during her 2014 Harvard commencement speech that Mindy Lahiri might be getting a puppy. Later, Kaling <a href="http://www.glamour.com/entertainment/blogs/obsessed/2014/06/mindy-kaling-mindy-project-season-3" target="_blank">admitted</a> that it would be nice to have a puppy on set, but “Mindy would probably kill the puppy like someone does with a plant.”</p>
<h4>19. Danny really did take it all off for that photoshoot.</h4>
<p>Chris Messina <a href="http://tvline.com/2014/06/18/the-mindy-project-chris-messina-interview-emmy-buzz/" target="_blank">stripped down</a> for Christina's shoot in season one: “That was a big photo shoot, and there was another photo shoot in the second season. So there’s a lot of silly pictures of me doing stupid poses with my clothes off somewhere, in somebody’s library on their computer.”</p>
<h4>20. Kaling never saw a wedding or a baby as something that would ruin her show.</h4>
<p>Kaling wasn’t worried about the show jumping the shark if her character settled down. Because Mindy Lahiri is so entertaining in her own right, she has <a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/465263" target="_blank">said</a>, “I think it would [still] be tumultuous and interesting, which … is good for the show.”</p>
</div></div></div><span class="field field-name-field-published-date field-type-datetime field-label-hidden">
<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">May 13, 2015 - 7:00pm</span></span>
</span>Wed, 13 May 2015 23:00:00 +0000Hannah60368 at http://mentalfloss.com30 Fun Facts About '30 Rock'http://mentalfloss.com/article/63159/30-fun-facts-about-30-rock
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/tv" class="author-writes-about-link">tv</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/8765htrk.png" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>nbc</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p dir="ltr">Though it turned out to be one of the most critically acclaimed television comedies of all time, earning a record-breaking 22 Primetime Emmy Award nominations in 2009 alone, life behind the scenes of <em>30 Rock</em> wasn’t always a laugh riot. From cast changes to cancellation concerns, there was always something to make Tina Fey go blurgh—though nothing that a good (or even mediocre) sandwich couldn’t fix. Here are 30 things you might not know about Fey's quirky comedy.</p>
<h4>1. It was supposed to be a show about news, not sketch comedy.</h4>
<p>Fey originally pitched a show about a Bill O'Reilly-like news program, in which she'd play the producer. “The first pitch was not unlike <em>The Newsroom</em> on HBO,” <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/the-last-days-of-30-rock-20130131" target="_blank">she later told <em>Rolling Stone</em></a>. NBC Vice President Kevin Reilly told her she should use her time at <em>SNL</em> as inspiration, and although she was initially not into the idea—“it seemed so lazy to just write about writing”—she came around when she thought about casting Tracy Morgan. It didn’t hurt that they had Lorne Michaels’ blessing, who had signed on to executive produce Fey’s show.</p>
<h4>2. <em>30 Rock</em> wasn’t the first choice for the title.</h4>
<p>The show was <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/video/rock-center/45201217#45201217" target="_blank">originally going to be called</a> <em>Rock Center</em>. Fey preferred the title <em>The Peacock</em>, but NBC didn’t want them to mock the company logo.</p>
<h4>3. No one involved expected Alec Baldwin to accept a starring role.</h4>
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<p>Fey created the character of Jack Donaghy for Baldwin, but she never thought he'd actually do the show; she didn’t even reach out to him before holding auditions for the part. But Baldwin happened to be hosting <em>SNL</em> around that time, so Fey and Michaels mentioned the part to him. "I <em>cannot</em> believe we got him," <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DZQzS1Wwls" target="_blank">she said at a Paley Center for Media panel</a>. One of the main reasons that Baldwin accepted was the promise of a four-day weekend. As the actor <a href="http://www.salon.com/2012/06/21/alec_baldwin_on_love_marriage_30_rock_and_woody_allen/" target="_blank">told Salon</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p>It was about Lorne Michaels, after my divorce, saying, “Come do this and I will make this palatable for your schedule,” because I had an obligation to fly out to L.A. to see my daughter every other weekend. This was seven years ago. Back then my daughter was 9 ... [It] was primarily about Lorne saying, “I will protect your schedule and you will not lose any time with your daughter. Come do this show.” And I really needed a harbor at that time. The idea of flying around and making my visitation with my daughter dependent on the whims of a film producer was always excruciating ... I had an almost inconceivably advantageous schedule at '30 Rock.' I always shot Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and had a four-day weekend to see my daughter.</p>
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<h4>4. Baldwin based Jack Donaghy on Lorne Michaels.</h4>
<p>Fey denies that the Liz-Jack relationship was based on her relationship with Michaels—but Baldwin took inspiration from him anyway. <a href="http://www.npr.org/2013/01/25/170166424/alec-baldwin-bids-goodbye-to-jack-donaghy" target="_blank">He told NPR that</a> "Professionally, [Jack is] a prototype of several GE executives, but in his personal life, he's Lorne Michaels. As I always say, 'Lorne is someone who has a tuxedo in the glove compartment of his car.' And Lorne is a friend, and I adore Lorne. But we do stick it to Lorne a lot.”</p>
<h4>5. The writers struggled to create the Jack-Liz relationship.</h4>
<p>Fey <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTGFpguxdfc" target="_blank">said at a Paley Center event</a> that the Liz and Jack relationship was a tough dynamic to define, but that the writers landed on “somewhere between Mary Tyler Moore and Lou Grant and Han Solo and Princess Leia.”</p>
<h4>6. Romance between Jack and Liz was never an option.</h4>
<p>Many wondered what would come of the relationship between Jack and Liz, but showrunner and writer Robert Carlock <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2013/02/28/30-rock-paley-center-panel" target="_blank">has stated</a> that the writers never planned to explore any romance between the two characters.</p>
<h4>7. Rachel Dratch was supposed to play Jenna.</h4>
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Fey’s fellow <em>SNL</em> alum, Dratch, was originally cast in the part of Jenna DeCarlo (her last name was changed to Maroney when they hired Jane Krakowski). "I think the big thing was—at least what they told me—that at first they wanted to have more comedy sketches in the show," <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/26/rachel-dratch-30-rock-recast_n_1379282.html?" target="_blank">Dratch told <em>New York</em> Magazine</a>. "Then they decided they weren’t going to focus on the sketches, so they needed more of a sitcom actress, as opposed to a character actress." Dratch did go on to <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0237222/" target="_blank">play</a> around 10 different characters throughout <em>30 Rock</em>’s run.</p>
<h4>8. Tracy Morgan was friends with his on-screen entourage.</h4>
<p>Morgan and Grizz Chapman, who played Grizz, were <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/31/showbiz/tv/30-rock-cast-series-finale/" target="_blank">friends in real life</a> before being cast on the show, and Kevin Brown, who played Dot Com, was <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gW_X3xQF2es" target="_blank">once Morgan’s manager</a>. “The chemistry you see on camera—that's what it is," <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/31/showbiz/tv/30-rock-cast-series-finale/" target="_blank">Chapman told CNN</a>. "What you see on camera—that's just friends, so that's why it comes across so well on TV.”</p>
<h4>9. Jon Hamm auditioned for the part of Jack.</h4>
<p dir="ltr">Though he didn’t get the role, Hamm went on to play one of Liz’s love interests, Dr. Drew Baird. "A lot of times when we’re writing we’ll have an actor in mind and we’ll keep referring to them," <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2009/01/21/tina-fey-and-jo" target="_blank">Fey told <em>Entertainment Weekly</em></a>. "Like for this [role] we said, 'Then Hamm comes in, blah blah blah.' And I kept saying, 'You know, you guys, we probably aren’t going to get Jon Hamm.' But we were lucky with the timing because <em>Mad Men</em> was on hiatus and he was hosting <em>SNL</em>. So I called over there and asked them [whispering], 'Hey, is that guy funny? Tell me the truth.' And they were like, 'Yes, he’s really funny.' By Saturday I knew they were right."</p>
<h4>10. Donald Glover was a writer for the show.</h4>
<p dir="ltr">Before he starred on <em>Community</em> or made it big as a rapper, Glover was a very young writer for <em>30 Rock</em>. "Donald started right out of college as a writer at <em>30 Rock</em>," <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2012/04/24/tina-fey-on-30-rock-live-show-donald-glover-and-the-season-finale" target="_blank">Fey told <em>Entertainment Weekly</em></a>. "He was actually still, I believe, living in an NYU dorm. He was an RA, and he would work and go home to a dorm." Glover made brief appearances in a few episodes, then returned to play young Tracy Jordan in a live episode. That Tracy Morgan impression also came in handy when the crew asked him to record the extended version of “Werewolf Bar Mitzvah.”</p>
<h4>11. Judah Friedlander brought his personal style to the part of Frank.</h4>
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<p>When Friedlander was cast as <em>TGS</em> writer Frank, he insisted on bringing his own look to the part. <a href="http://flavorwire.com/461961/30-rock-was-a-writers-show-judah-friedlander-on-frank-rossitano-american-splendor-and-the-wet-hot-american-summer-prequel" target="_blank">According to Friedlander</a>, “The character was not supposed to be wearing glasses or a hat. But you know, before doing <em>30 Rock</em> I’d done lots of movies, and in a lot of those I completely changed my appearance as well as the way I talked ... So when I was doing this show, I told them, ‘I’ve gotta look like me.’ I’m still doing standup all the time, and my look is very particular to my standup act. It’s all interconnected.”</p>
<h4>12. Morgan improvised a few of Tracy Jordan’s famous possessions.</h4>
<p>In the second episode of season one, when Liz is surprised to learn that Tracy Jordan owns a yacht, Tracy responds, “I got a yacht. I got a solid gold jet ski, two Batmobiles, the AIDS monkey’s bones …” That part was scripted, but <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTGFpguxdfc" target="_blank">according to</a> Fey, his line ended there, and they needed him to keep talking as his character rounded a corner. So he improvised a few additional items, like “the first moped,” “a pair of Rock Hudson's socks,” and “a pair of Bill Bixby’s glasses from when he used to be your best friend.”</p>
<h4>13. Morgan was known for his improvising.</h4>
<p>According to the other cast members, Morgan <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/31/showbiz/tv/30-rock-cast-series-finale/" target="_blank">improvised</a> quite frequently. Kevin Brown joked that it was because “he never looked at the script.” But, Morgan asserted, “I come from a standup background and the first three letters in the word funny are fun. So I always had fun with it and I guess I made it look easy. I made it look like I wasn't reading the script.”</p>
<h4>14. Fey thought the show would get cancelled during season one.</h4>
<p>In 2006, <em>30 Rock</em> was often mentioned in the same sentence as <em>Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip</em>. They both premiered on NBC at around the same time and even had similar premises—both were peeks behind the scenes of a sketch comedy show. Many people wondered which would last. Meanwhile, Fey was busy thinking about whether <em>30 Rock</em> was just too out there. Krakowski later <a href="http://www.glamour.com/entertainment/blogs/obsessed/2012/12/jane-krakowski-tells-us-her-fa" target="_blank">recalled</a>, “Today I was remembering Paul Reubens being on the show in season one. It had a real title ['Black Tie'], but I remember Tina was calling the episode 'Goodbye America' because she thought we wouldn't stay on the air after that one. That was the first time that we knew the show was not going to be normal.”</p>
<h4>15. The show contained almost 10 jokes per minute.</h4>
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<p>The show was known for its fast-paced writing. In 2010, one blogger actually <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/the-last-days-of-30-rock-20130131" target="_blank">calculated</a> how many jokes there were per minute in the show. They determined that there was an average of 9.57 jokes each minute.</p>
<h4>16. The second season almost ended with Liz adopting a 12-year-old boy.</h4>
<p dir="ltr">The writers <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2013/02/28/30-rock-paley-center-panel" target="_blank">toyed</a> around with the idea of Liz adopting a kid early on in the show. But the adoption wouldn’t last long: they planned to have the child steal from Liz, then vanish. <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2013/02/28/30-rock-paley-center-panel target=" blank="">According to <em>Entertainment Weekly</em></a>, "NBC promised to promote the plot line over the summer. But that never happened, and the story was dropped."</p>
<h4>17. Jenna and Pete almost dated.</h4>
<p>Another <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2013/02/28/30-rock-paley-center-panel" target="_blank">planned</a> plotline that didn’t happen: some interoffice romance between Jenna and Pete. A script even made it to the table read, but the writers eventually nixed it because they found it too weird and didn’t like the idea of Pete being unfaithful to his wife.</p>
<h4>18. Fey’s husband, Jeff Richmond, composed the music for the show.</h4>
<p>Richmond and Fey married in 2001 after meeting each other at <a href="http://www.secondcity.com/" target="_blank">The Second City</a> in Chicago. They’ve managed to continue working together for much of their careers. In addition to composing the music for <em>30 Rock</em>, Richmond produced the show and even made a few cameos. More recently, Richmond did the music for Fey’s latest producing effort, <em>Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt</em>.</p>
<h4>19. The show actually leaned conservatively.</h4>
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<p>Though the show was often considered leftist, the writers actually made an effort to have the conservative Jack Donaghy be correct more than liberal Liz Lemon. As Carlock <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/the-last-days-of-30-rock-20130131" target="_blank">explained to <em>Rolling Stone</em></a>, “It’s a lot more fun to let the conservative guy be right more because it’s contrary to what most TV shows are flogging. It’s fun to let Liz be a little less well-informed, but maybe a little more morally right, and Jack to be a lot more sophisticated.”</p>
<h4>20. There were a few Easter eggs in Liz Lemon’s office.</h4>
<p dir="ltr">Some of the items on the wall of Lemon’s office were personal to Fey. They <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9F-b_TDPS8" target="_blank">included</a> a few pictures of her daughter, a picture of Fey with Don Pardo, and Amy Poehler’s cover of <em>BUST</em> Magazine.</p>
<h4>21. Fey used the real Jack McBrayer as inspiration for his character, Kenneth the page.</h4>
<p>McBrayer loves to eat chickpeas out of a can, and he <a href="http://teamcoco.com/video/jack-mcbrayer-30-rock-hick" target="_blank">told Conan O'Brien</a> that Fey made his character a fan of that snack as well. She used his quirks as inspiration for other characters, too: like McBrayer, Nancy Donovan (played by Julianne Moore) wrapped a can of Sprite in tin foil to keep it cold.</p>
<h4>22. When Oprah guest starred, she accused Fey of working too hard.</h4>
<p>Oprah made an appearance in season three, which was filmed in 2008. That happened to be the same time that Fey agreed to reappear on <em>SNL</em> to impersonate Sarah Palin (despite the fact that she hadn’t been a cast member on the show for years). Fey <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/10/fashion/10Cultural-.html?_r=0" target="_blank">told <em>The</em> <em>New York Times</em></a> that when Oprah <span>learned that Fey was going right from an all-day Saturday shoot to her first appearance as Palin on </span><em>SNL</em>, she said Fey might be overextending herself.</p>
<h4>23. Christopher Cross was a fan of the show.</h4>
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<p>In the season four episode “Floyd,” Liz cries and sings a made-up Christopher Cross song. After watching the episode, Cross actually <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9F-b_TDPS8" target="_blank">finished</a> the song, then recorded a version of it and sent it to the crew. To return the favor, the writers named Liz’s last boyfriend “Criss Chros” after him.</p>
<h4>24. There was a live stage show before the live episode aired.</h4>
<p>In the fifth season, <em>30 Rock</em> tackled its first live episode. But the cast <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXi5cNTr8Iw" target="_blank">had</a> actually already done a live show during the Writers Guild of America Strike of 2007-2008. To raise money for the writers, they performed an already-aired episode in front of a live audience. Since they had a great time, they decided to write one to broadcast live.</p>
<h4>25. Fey enlisted <em>SNL</em> experts to help with the live episode.</h4>
<p>The live episode <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXi5cNTr8Iw" target="_blank">was</a> filmed on the <em>SNL</em> set in front of an audience. They also hired Beth McCarthy-Miller, who directed <em>SNL</em> for 11 years, to direct the episode and ensure all of the live aspects went off without a hitch.</p>
<h4>26. Baldwin almost left the show after the fifth season.</h4>
<p>He thought the writing and creativity had taken a downturn. "It was the low point," <a target="_blank" href="http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/news/alec-baldwin-and-tina-fey-on-the-end-of-30-rock-20130116">Baldwin told <em>Rolling Stone</em></a><em></em>. "Though even anemic <em>30 Rock</em> writing is still better than everybody else's writing. I go, 'I'm going to get the f*** out of here, I'm done,' because I'm an employee, I don't have any say. So Season Five ends, and I'm saying 'Next year, I'm done,' then I come back, and Season Six is really good, we all had fun again." By the time the show ended, he was <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ew.com/article/2012/10/04/30-rock-alec-baldwin-salary-cut">offering to take a pay cut</a> for the show to continue.</p>
<h4>27. Morgan had to take eight weeks off for an urgent kidney transplant in 2011.</h4>
<p>Sherri Shepherd, who played Morgan's wife on the show, <a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/tina-fey-30rock-1060160/" target="_blank">stepped</a> in to star in a few episodes so that they could continue Tracy Jordan’s storyline while Morgan was on medical leave. And thus, the infamous “Queen of Jordan” episode was created in the style of<em> The</em> <em>Real Housewives</em> reality series.</p>
<h4>28. To write the finale, the writers took inspiration from many sitcom finales.</h4>
<p>They watched a handful of other television show finales on their lunch break, including the ones from <em>The Mary Tyler Moore Show</em>, <em>Frasier</em>, <em>Cheers</em>—and <em>iCarly</em>. "I was moved to tears by the <em>iCarly</em> finale," <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2014/04/15/tina-fey-and-robert-carlock-on-30-rock-finale-and-why-they-screened-icarly" target="_blank">Fey told <em>Entertainment Weekly</em></a>. "It didn’t hold up in the room because they didn’t know the characters like I did. But that was another one where they really let people say goodbye!" Said Carlock, "It was very well done."</p>
<h4>29. The writers didn't want to end the show with a Liz Lemon wedding.</h4>
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<p>This is why she got married halfway through the final season. Fey wanted her to “find happiness,” <a href="http://www.ew.com/article/2014/04/15/tina-fey-and-robert-carlock-on-30-rock-finale-and-why-they-screened-icarly" target="_blank">she told <em>Entertainment Weekly</em></a>, but didn’t want marriage to “be the accumulation of her time.”</p>
<h4>30. Baldwin bought all of Jack’s suits when the show ended.</h4>
<p>According to Tom Broecker, the show’s costume designer, Baldwin really liked his wardrobe on the show—enough to take the suits home when the series wrapped. "He wrote a big check to NBC," <a href="http://www.zap2it.com/blogs/30_rock_alec_baldwin_taking_jack_donaghys_wardrobe_with_him-2013-01" target="_blank">Broecker told Zap2It</a>. "He likes his clothes and wants to look good."</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">April 16, 2015 - 5:28pm</span></span>
</span>Thu, 16 Apr 2015 21:45:41 +0000Rebecca OConnell63159 at http://mentalfloss.com19 Future Stars Who Appeared on 'Gilmore Girls'http://mentalfloss.com/article/61455/19-future-stars-who-appeared-gilmore-girls
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/tv" class="author-writes-about-link">tv</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/ridzgof_1.jpg" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Over the course of its seven-year run, <em>Gilmore Girls </em> introduced many future stars. Some even played multiple characters on the show before making it big. </p>
<h4>1. Jon Hamm // "Peyton Sanders"</h4>
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The future Don Draper's biggest role prior to <em>Gilmore Girls</em> was a recurring part in the TV series <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0177991/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_49" target="_blank"><em>Providence</em></a> (which apparently didn't pay very well—the actor has said in interviews that he <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/17/jon-hamm-waiter-providence_n_3612097.html" target="_blank">kept his job as a waiter</a> for the year he was on the show). In the season three episode “Eight O’Clock at the Oasis,” Hamm played Peyton Sanders; his character met Lorelai at an auction. They went on one date, but she had a miserable time (off camera).</p>
<h4>2. Max Greenfield // "Lucas"</h4>
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<p>Max Greenfield had appeared on two TV shows before he played Lucas in the season four episode "Chicken or Beef?" He attended Dean’s bachelor party and tells Luke, “Hey, my name’s Luke, too. We should start a club or something.” After <em>Gilmore Girls</em>, Greenfield played a romantic interest for <em>Veronica Mars </em>for a couple of seasons, a role he reprised in the 2014 film. For four years, he has starred on <em>New Girl </em>as Schmidt.</p>
<h4>3. Alex Borstein // "Drella," "Miss Celine," and "Doris"</h4>
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<p>Borstein, who at the time was appearing on <em>MADtv, </em>was originally cast as <em>Gilmore Girls'</em> Sookie. But when Melissa McCarthy took over that role, Borstein was given the opportunity to play three different characters. She was the Independence Inn’s sassy harpist, Drella, in four season one episodes, and played Emily’s stylist in the later seasons. She also provided the voice for Doris in the season three episode “Eight O’Clock at the Oasis.”</p>
<p>Since wrapping up <em>MADtv</em> in 2009, Borstein has starred in <em>A Million Ways to Die in the West </em>and <em>Shameless</em>. She also voices Lois on <em>Family Guy</em>. </p>
<h4>4. Chad Michael Murray // "Tristan Dugray" </h4>
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Chad Michael Murray had just a few roles under his belt when he played Rory’s rich Chilton classmate, who definitely had a thing for her, in the first season of <em>Gilmore Girls</em>. He left <em>Gilmore Girls</em> to do a season of <em>Dawson’s Creek, </em>then played Lucas Scott on <em>One Tree Hill</em> for six seasons. Now, he appears on <em>Agent Carter</em> as Jack Thompson.</p>
<h4>5. Seth MacFarlane // "Zach" and "Bob Merriam"</h4>
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MacFarlane had already created and premiered <em>Family Guy</em> when he took on his first live-action role as Zach, a business school student who graduated alongside Lorelai in the season two episode "Lorelai’s Graduation Day." Later, he played Emily’s lawyer, Bob Merriam, in the season three episode “I Solemnly Swear.” Since<em> Gilmore Girls</em>, MacFarlane has created <em>American Dad</em> and <em>The Cleveland Show</em>, and he wrote and starred in <em>Ted </em>and <em>A Million Ways to Die in the West</em>. He also somehow found time to host the 85th Academy Awards in 2013. </p>
<h4>6. Jane Lynch // "Nurse"</h4>
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<p>The same year she appeared in the mockumentary <em>Best in Show</em>, Jane Lynch played an exasperated nurse who gets harassed by Emily when Richard is in the hospital in the season one episode "Forgiveness and Stuff." Since then, she has starred in many films, including <em>The 40-Year-Old Virgin</em>, <em>Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby</em>, and <em>A Mighty Wind</em>. She has also had regular roles on shows <em>Two and a Half Men</em>, <em>Party Down</em>, and, of course, <em>Glee</em>. She currently hosts NBC’s <em>Hollywood Game Night</em>.</p>
<h4>7. Masi Oka // "Unnamed philosophy student"</h4>
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Masi Oka had just two roles under his belt when he played a student who into a debate with Rory when she sneaks into a Harvard class in the season two episode "The Road Trip to Harvard." These days, Oka is best known for playing Hiro on four seasons of <em>Heroes</em>; he can now be seen as Dr. Max Bergman in <em>Hawaii Five-0</em>.</p>
<h4>8. Brandon Routh // "Jess"</h4>
<p>Future Superman Brandon Routh had appeared in a couple of TV shows—including MTV's <em>Undressed</em>—before he played Jess, a handsome man who lured Madeline and Louise away from a Bangles concert, in the season one episode "Concert Interruptus." Currently, he stars on the TV show <em>Arrow</em>.</p>
<h4>9. Adam Brody // "Dave Rygalski"</h4>
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Adam Brody had a number of roles before he landed the role of Seth Cohen in <em>The O.C.</em>. One of them was Dave Rygalski on <em>Gilmore Girls</em>. The character, who appeared in season three, played in Lane’s band and eventually became her boyfriend; after Brody booked <em>The O.C.</em>, characters on <em>Gilmore Girls</em> said that Dave “moved to California.”</p>
<h4>10. Riki Lindhome // "Girl #2" And "Juliet"</h4>
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<p>These days, Riki Lindhome is best known as one half of the popular singing duo Garfunkel and Oates, which now has a TV show of the same name on IFC. But in the early days of her career, she booked a couple of roles on <em>Gilmore Girls</em>: In the season three episode “One’s Got Class and the Other One Dyes,” she plays a girl in a Stars Hollow classroom where Lorelai is giving a speech. In seasons five and six, Lindhome plays Juliet, a member of the Life and Death Brigade secret society along with Logan. Since Gilmore Girls, she has appeared in the movies <em>My Best Friend’s Girl</em>, <em>The Last House on the Left</em>, and <em>Million Dollar Baby</em>.</p>
<h4>11. Abigail Spencer // "Megan"</h4>
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<p>Soap fans might have recognized Abigail Spencer—who played Rebecca Tyree on a season of <em>All My Children</em>—when she popped up on <em>Gilmore Girls</em> as Megan, one of the bridesmaids of Honor Huntzberger, Logan’s sister, in the season six episode "Bridesmaids Revisited." Since the show, Spencer has had roles in <em>Oz the Great and Powerful</em>, <em>This Means War</em>, and <em>Cowboys &amp; Aliens</em>. You can see her now playing Dana Scott on <em>Suits</em>.</p>
<h4>12. Nasim Pedrad // "Waitress" </h4>
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<p>Future <em>SNL</em> player Nasim Pedrad had just two credits to her name when she played a waitress in "Bridesmaids Revisited"; she waited on a sad, drunk Rory in a bar. After <em>Gilmore Girls</em>, she played a nurse on <em>ER</em> and landed <em>SNL</em> in 2009, where she stayed for five seasons. Most recently, she appeared in the sitcom <em>Mulaney<em>.</em></em></p>
<h4>13. Matt Jones // "Morgan"</h4>
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<p>In his first TV role ever, Matt Jones helped Jackson deep fry a Thanksgiving turkey in the season two episode “A Deep Fried Korean Thanksgiving.” He didn’t get another TV role until 2008, when his career really took off: He played Badger on five seasons of <em>Breaking Bad</em> and now stars as Baxter in the CBS sitcom <em>Mom</em>.</p>
<h4>14. Arielle Kebbel // "Lindsay"</h4>
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<p>Arielle Kebbel had done just a couple of bit parts on TV shows before she played Lindsay, who dates, then marries, Rory’s ex-boyfriend Dean in seasons four and five of <em>Gilmore Girls</em>. Since then, she's starred in <em>The Uninvited</em>, <em>John Tucker Must Die</em>, and <em>Think Like a Man</em>. She frequently makes appearances as Lexi on <em>The Vampire Diaries</em>.</p>
<h4>15. Ben Falcone // "Mr. Brink"</h4>
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<p>Ben Falcone played the executor of Fran’s will, who informs Lorelai that Fran’s family will be selling the Dragonfly Inn, in the season three episode "Say Goodnight, Gracie." Before that, he had just four on-screen credits. Since <em>Gilmore Girls</em>, Falcone has been in <em>Bridesmaids</em>, <em>Enough Said</em>, and <em>What to Expect When You’re Expecting.</em> He also wrote and directed the 2014 film <em>Tammy</em>, which starred his wife, Melissa McCarthy, who played Sookie on <em>Gilmore Girls</em>.</p>
<h4>16. Colin Egglesfield // "Sean" </h4>
<p>Colin Egglesfield had small parts on four TV shows—including <em>Law &amp; Order: SVU</em>—before he played Sean in the season four episode “Girls in Bikinis, Boys Doin’ the Twist.” Rory meets Sean while she's on spring break in Florida. She falls for him, but he doesn’t reciprocate much—until he sees her kiss Paris. Since <em>Gilmore Girls</em>, Egglesfield has been a cast member in many TV series, including <em>All My Children</em>, <em>The Client List</em>, and <em>Rizzoli &amp; Isles</em>. He also played Dex, the romantic interest of both Ginnifer Goodwin and Kate Hudson, in the film <em>Something Borrowed</em>. </p>
<h4>17. Danny Pudi // "Raj"</h4>
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<p>Danny Pudi had appeared in one episode each of <em>The West Wing</em> and <em>ER</em> before playing Raj, a Yale Daily News writer, for four episodes in seasons six and seven of <em>Gilmore Girls</em>. Now, of course, he’s best known for playing Abed Nadir in <em>Community</em>.</p>
<h4>18. Victoria Justice // "Jill #2"</h4>
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In her first television appearance ever, Victoria Justice played Jill #2, a young girl at a party catered by Lorelai and Sookie, in the season four episode “The Hobbit, the Sofa, and Digger Stiles.” She claimed that Sookie’s cooking “tastes like diapers.” Since <em>Gilmore Girls</em>, Justice has starred in two wildly popular Nickelodeon shows: <em>Zoey 101 </em>and <em>Victorious</em>. She can now be seen in the new MTV series <em>Eye Candy</em>, where she plays a cyber sleuth. </p>
<h4>19. Emily Bergl // "Francie Jarvis"</h4>
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<p>Emily Bergl had a few small roles before she played Rory’s intimidating, popular classmate at Chilton in the second and third seasons of <em>Gilmore Girls</em>. Since then, Bergl has appeared on <em>Desperate Housewives</em> and was a regular on <em>Southland </em>until 2013. She now stars as Sammi in <em>Shameless</em>.</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">February 12, 2015 - 5:00pm</span></span>
</span>Thu, 12 Feb 2015 22:00:00 +0000Rebecca OConnell61455 at http://mentalfloss.com22 Things You Might Not Know About 'Inception'http://mentalfloss.com/article/61038/22-things-you-might-not-know-about-inception
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/movies" class="author-writes-about-link">Movies</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/screen_shot_2015-01-11_at_8.49.40_pm.png" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Youtube</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>After <em>The Dark Knight </em><a href="http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2004109,00.html" target="_blank">made</a> $1 billion worldwide, Warner Bros. allowed director Christopher Nolan to make his passion project, <em>Inception</em>—though most passion projects don’t get a budget of $160 million. The confusing-but-exhilarating film <a href="http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=inception.htm" target="_blank">made</a> more than $800 million worldwide. Here are 22 things you might not know about the film.</p>
<h4>1. Nolan wrote <em>Inception </em>in addition to directing it.</h4>
<p>He actually <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmmakersonfilm/7866677/Inception-Christopher-Nolan-interview.html" target="_blank">came</a> up with the idea in the early 2000s after he finished making <em>Insomnia</em>. Originally, he considered using the same concept, but as a horror film.</p>
<h4>2. Nolan was influenced by the creative processes that he knew—so there are quite a few metaphors for filmmaking.</h4>
<p>Each character represents a <a href="http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/07/24/behind-the-scenes-of-inception-a-movie-about-movies%E2%80%94and-the-mind-of-its-maker/" target="_blank">vital part of the industry</a>. “The Point Man” (Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Arthur) is the producer, “The Architect” (Ellen Page as Ariadne) is the production designer, “The Forger” (Tom Hardy as Eames) is the actor, and “The Mark” (Cillian Murphy as Robert Fischer) is the audience. As for Leonardo DiCaprio as Dom Cobb, he’s a stand-in for the director, giving him obvious parallels to Nolan. “I can lose myself in my job very easily," <a href="http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/07/24/behind-the-scenes-of-inception-a-movie-about-movies%E2%80%94and-the-mind-of-its-maker/" target="_blank">Nolan told <em>Entertainment Weekly</em></a><em>. </em>"It’s rare that you can identify yourself so clearly in a film. This film is very clear for me.”</p>
<h4>3. Nolan didn’t research dreams while writing the screenplay.</h4>
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<p>He took a similar approach to writing a movie about dreams as he did to writing <em>Memento</em>, a movie about memory. He primarily used his own experiences and feelings rather than outside information. “I think a lot of what I find you want to do with research is just confirming things you want to do," he <a href="http://collider.com/inception-interview-leonardo-dicaprio-joseph-gordon-levitt-ellen-page-marion-cotillard-tom-hardy-cillian-murphy-ken-watanabe-director-christopher-nolan-composer-hans-zimmer-and-producer/" target="_blank">told Collider</a>. "If the research contradicts what you want to do, you tend to go ahead and do it anyway. So at a certain point I realized that if you’re trying to reach an audience, being as subjective as possible and really trying to write from something genuine is the way to go. Really it’s mostly from my own process, my own experience.”</p>
<h4>4. To get the studio on board, Nolan had to convince them that the various dream layers would be as minimally confusing as possible.</h4>
<p>He <a href="http://deadline.com/2011/01/oscar-christopher-nolan-qa-inceptions-writer-director-is-a-hollwood-original-94704/" target="_blank">told them</a>, “One of the dream levels is in the rain, one of them is a night interior, one is outdoors in the snow ... even in a close-up, you would be able to tell which level you were in as you cross-cut.”</p>
<h4>5. The casting decisions revolved around DiCaprio.</h4>
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<p>Nolan knew that he <a href="http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/2010/07/15/casting_inception_was_all_about_dicaprio.html" target="_blank">wanted Leonardo DiCaprio</a> for the role of Cobb, so according to him, “We were just trying to cast the best people I could find for those parts, who felt right around Leo.” This also involved casting a young ensemble because Nolan “wanted to get a young, energetic cast around him who wouldn’t make [DiCaprio] look younger.”</p>
<h4>6. In addition to affecting the cast, DiCaprio also altered the script.</h4>
<p>“Once Leo came on board, I spent months and months sitting with him and discussing the script," <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/christopher-nolan-inception-96528" target="_blank">Nolan told the <em>Hollywood Reporter</em></a>. "He made some extraordinary contributions to the script and really challenged me to make the script clear, but also to follow its interior logic and really be true to the essence of the characters and the rules we set out.” Nolan’s wife and producing partner, Emma Thomas, <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/anatomy-contender-making-inception-47634" target="_blank">said that</a> “the work [DiCaprio] did on his character with Chris made the movie less of a puzzle and more of a story of a character audiences could relate to.”</p>
<h4>7. Page didn’t have to audition at all.</h4>
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<p>She met with Nolan for a sit down that had nothing to do with the film. The next week, she was <a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/1638145/inception-star-ellen-page-joins-christopher-nolans-boys-club/" target="_blank">asked to read the script</a> for <em>Inception</em>. She had to read it in an office, not at home. Luckily, she loved the character and Nolan gave her the role.</p>
<h4>8. Ariadne is named after the daughter of Minos in Greek mythology.</h4>
<p>It’s a unique name for a modern day character, but it makes complete sense for the part. In one story, Minos actually has Ariadne take control of a labyrinth. In the film, the labyrinth that Ariadne draws for Cobb’s test is very similar to paintings of the ancient character’s labyrinth. Nolan acknowledges this connection. “I wanted to have that to help explain the importance of the labyrinth to the audience," <a href="http://www.wired.com/2010/11/pl_inception_nolan/" target="_blank">he told <em>Wired</em></a>. "I don’t know how many people pick up on that association when they’re watching the film. It was just a little pointer, really. I like the idea of her being Cobb’s guide.”</p>
<h4>9. The movie was filmed around the world.</h4>
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<p>The rotating set that Arthur flies through was created in Bedfordshire, England. Calgary, Alberta was the location for the epic mountain scenes. They also did shoots in Morocco, Tokyo, London, and Los Angeles. Overall, they ended up <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhsA9QUHDQc" target="_blank">filming</a> in <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmmakersonfilm/7866677/Inception-Christopher-Nolan-interview.html" target="_blank">six different countries</a>.</p>
<h4>10. They considered filming in 3D.</h4>
<p>Eventually, though, Nolan <a href="http://deadline.com/2011/01/oscar-christopher-nolan-qa-inceptions-writer-director-is-a-hollwood-original-94704/" target="_blank">determined</a> that they would be “too restricted by the technology.” After filming, they almost converted the movie to 3D in post-production, but there simply wasn’t enough time.</p>
<h4>11. Nolan wanted most of the explosions to look surreal, rather than the standard Hollywood orange flames.</h4>
<p>Shooting guidelines in Paris <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/anatomy-contender-making-inception-47634?page=2" target="_blank">frowned</a> upon the use of actual explosions. So, the crew <a href="http://www.wired.co.uk/magazine/archive/2010/08/play/behind-the-special-effects-of-inception" target="_blank">used</a> high-pressure nitrogen, which they set off right near the cast. Said special effects coordinator Chris Corbould, “When we let an explosion off behind an actor, you get a very different reaction from when he is standing in front of a green screen and someone yells, ‘Explosion!’” More debris was added and the explosions were enhanced in post-production.</p>
<h4>12. The paradoxical stairs were inspired by the art of M.C. Escher.</h4>
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<p>Nolan wanted to build a paradoxical staircase that worked, but it <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0I4291XXZJw" target="_blank">wasn't possible</a>. So, they built a staircase that just ended abruptly. In order to make them look like a paradox on camera, the crew turned to a visual effects team. According to Paul Franklin, the Visual Effects Supervisor, “These steps have to be built in such a way that when you view them from one angle, the top most level of the staircase lines up with the bottom most level of the staircase. And so what visual effects is able to do is we’re able to make computer models of this and work out exactly the dimensions of the steps that have to be built and where the camera has to be in three-dimensional space to be able to film it.”</p>
<h4>13. Nolan's team built sets that shifted and rotated.</h4>
<p>During the scene in which Cobb explains to Fischer that they are in a dream, he proves it by letting the room shake and shift. To pull it off, the crew <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhsA9QUHDQc" target="_blank">moved the set 25 degrees</a> while filming, without any of the props moving. According to DiCaprio, “The entire set would be shifting. We had to hold onto the actual set so we didn’t slide off.”</p>
<p>For the scenes in which Arthur is floating around the hotel without gravity, Gordon-Levitt wasn’t acting in front of a green screen or placed in zero-gravity. The crew actually built the set so it could <a href="http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2010/07/19/inception-hallway-fight-scene-is-old-school-filmmaking-at-its-finest/" target="_blank">rotate</a> a full 360 degrees. Then, they would suspend Gordon-Levitt from a wire to get their shots. It took 500 people and three weeks to film all those scenes. Gordon-Levitt only <a href="http://collider.com/inception-interview-leonardo-dicaprio-joseph-gordon-levitt-ellen-page-marion-cotillard-tom-hardy-cillian-murphy-ken-watanabe-director-christopher-nolan-composer-hans-zimmer-and-producer/" target="_blank">used</a> his stunt double for one shot.</p>
<h4>14. The actors didn’t have too much trouble telling which level of the dream world they were supposed to be in at the time.</h4>
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<p>Hardy <a href="http://collider.com/inception-interview-leonardo-dicaprio-joseph-gordon-levitt-ellen-page-marion-cotillard-tom-hardy-cillian-murphy-ken-watanabe-director-christopher-nolan-composer-hans-zimmer-and-producer/" target="_blank">told Collider</a>, “It was easy to orientate which dream sequence I was in because of my costume. If in doubt, I could just look at my shoes and say ‘Oh! I know which dream I’m in.’”</p>
<h4>15. The mountain set was built into the side of a mountain.</h4>
<p>The set, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhsA9QUHDQc" target="_blank">built into a mountainside in Alberta</a>, had no snow at the time. In fact, the crew was starting to get concerned that they wouldn’t end up having any snow by the time the shoot started. “The art department kept sending us pictures of mud," Thomas said. "The week before we went up there, we still had no snow.” But that wasn’t a problem for long. They ended up shooting in the middle of blizzards after the biggest storm of the decade.</p>
<h4>16. The scene in which the van falls off the bridge in slow motion took months to shoot.</h4>
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<p><a href="http://www.mtv.com/news/1643645/inception-stars-reveal-secrets-behind-epic-van-scene/" target="_blank">According to Dileep Rao</a>, who played the driver Yusuf, “We’d shoot it one day, go off and shoot something else. Then shoot another piece of [the van]. It was so complex and there were so many locations and so many different moves I have to do. It’s the stuff that makes or breaks that last sequence.” For the underwater portions, actors were holding their breath for up to five minutes at a time, with the occasional top off from a SCUBA tank. As for how they got the van to fall off the bridge? It was shot out of a cannon.</p>
<h4>17. Though Nolan handled many special effects on set, there was still a lot of work to be done in post-production.</h4>
<p>For instance, Franklin said, “Getting the bits and bobs to fall out of the hotel cleaning trolley [in zero gravity]? That’s one guy — months of lonesome work.” And a team of CGI specialists worked on the “Limbo City” scenes with DiCaprio and Page for nine full months.</p>
<h4>18. The song <a href="http://news.moviefone.com/2010/07/29/listen-to-this-inception-music-easter-egg/" target="_blank">used</a> to cue the characters into waking up is “Non, je ne regrette rien” by Edith Piaf.</h4>
<p>The song resembles the film’s score, which is no coincidence: Composer Hans Zimmer actually went to the National Archives in France, found the original master for the song, and extracted one beat that he then heavily modified.</p>
<h4>19. Nolan finished both early and under budget.</h4>
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<p>He actually <a href="http://collider.com/inception-interview-leonardo-dicaprio-joseph-gordon-levitt-ellen-page-marion-cotillard-tom-hardy-cillian-murphy-ken-watanabe-director-christopher-nolan-composer-hans-zimmer-and-producer/" target="_blank">prefers</a> the constraints that time and money give him, so he makes a serious effort to be efficient when it comes to filmmaking.</p>
<h4>20. Nolan hasn’t commented much on <em>Inception</em>'s ambiguous ending.</h4>
<p>In 2010, <a href="http://marquee.blogs.cnn.com/2010/12/02/christopher-nolan-talks-inceptions-ending/" target="_blank">he told CNN</a> that the film was intentionally left that way, so he has no desire to add to the conversation. “There can’t be anything in the film that tells you one way or another because then the ambiguity at the end of the film would just be a mistake," he said. "It would represent a failure of the film to communicate something. But it’s not a mistake. I put that cut there at the end, imposing an ambiguity from outside the film. That always felt the right ending to me."</p>
<p>Michael Caine has his own interpretation of the ending that he hasn’t been shy with, though. He claims that the ending is undoubtedly real, not a dream. “[The spinning top] drops at the end, that’s when I come back on," <a href="http://screenrant.com/michael-caine-inception-ending-batman-3-benm-80670/" target="_blank">he told Screenrant</a>. "If I’m there it’s real, because I’m never in the dream. I’m the guy who invented the dream.”</p>
<h4>21. Film scholars have tons of different theories about the film.</h4>
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<p>Some of these include: it <a href="http://www.wired.com/2010/07/the-neuroscience-of-inception/" target="_blank">was</a> all a dream, Saito <a href="http://news.moviefone.com/2010/07/19/dissecting-inception-six-interpretations-and-five-plot-holes/" target="_blank">is</a> the actual architect, and Cobb is dreaming/not dreaming/dead at the end of the film.</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">January 12, 2015 - 11:00am</span></span>
</span>Mon, 12 Jan 2015 16:00:00 +0000Rebecca OConnell61038 at http://mentalfloss.com21 Things You Might Not Have Known About 'The Office'http://mentalfloss.com/article/60370/21-things-you-might-not-have-known-about-office
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/tv" class="author-writes-about-link">tv</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/screen_shot_2014-12-01_at_6.22.50_pm.png" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Kerbyh529&#039;s channel, Youtube</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>In 2005, a group of Americans were tasked with adapting beloved British series <em>The Office</em>. They rose to the high expectations and managed to create a successful comedy that ran for nine seasons. Here are 21 things you might not have known about the show.</p>
<p><strong>1.</strong> B.J. Novak <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/24/arts/television/24offi.html?pagewanted=print&amp;_r=0" target="_blank">was</a> the first person cast. The show’s producer, Greg Daniels, was inspired by his time on <em>Saturday Night Live</em> and wanted to hire a writer-performer. Other writer-performers who were later added include Mindy Kaling (Kelly) and Paul Lieberstein (Toby). Michael Schur, who wrote and produced the show, played Dwight’s cousin, Mose.</p>
<p><strong>2.</strong> The cast could have been a lot different. For instance, Adam Scott auditioned for the part of Jim Halpert. Seth Rogen was in the running to play Dwight Schrute. Eric Stonestreet, who is now on <em>Modern Family</em>, auditioned for Kevin. Before getting cast as Angela, Angela Kinsey auditioned for Pam. Bob Odenkirk <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/05/arts/television/the-office-finale.html?pagewanted=all" target="_blank">was</a> originally cast as Michael Scott but was replaced by Steve Carell when the show he’d been working on, <em>Come to Papa</em>, was cancelled.</p>
<p><strong>3.</strong> One reason Adam Scott could have easily played Jim: John Krasinski’s <em>Office</em> audition didn’t go too well. First of all, he <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/20/the-office-trivia_n_6004486.html" target="_blank">was</a> supposed to audition for Dwight, but he convinced the casting directors to let him read for the part of Jim. Secondly, he got into some trouble in the waiting room. A man eating salad in the room asked him if he was nervous. Krasinski answered, “You know, not really. You either get these things or you don't. But what I'm really nervous about is this show. It's just I love the British show so much and Americans have a tendency to just really screw these opportunities up. I just don't know how I'll live with myself if they screw this show up and ruin it for me.” The man responded, “My name's Greg Daniels, I'm the Executive Producer.” Still, Krasinski managed to get the part.</p>
<p><strong>4.</strong> Phyllis Smith <a href="http://www.bnd.com/2013/09/05/2779486/st-louis-own-phyllis-smith-from.html" target="_blank">was</a> a casting agent for the show before she got the part of Phyllis. She was reading the script with some auditioning actors when director Ken Kwapis decided that she was the one who should be cast.</p>
<p><strong>5. </strong>Even if they weren’t writers, Daniels wanted to make sure his actors had a background in improvisation. He has <a href="http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2006-12-17/entertainment/TVTIMEFILLER17_1_1_writer-comedy-daniels" target="_blank">said</a>, “Improv is a good tool to make it seem more natural."</p>
<p><strong>6.</strong> The pilot <a href="http://heywriterboy.blogspot.com/2007/06/in-conversation-greg-daniels-executive.html" target="_blank">was</a> shot with essentially the same script as the pilot from the British show. Many viewers questioned this decision, but it had to be done considering NBC bought an adaptation. Daniels believes that the show really branched out into its own entity in the second season.</p>
<p><strong>7.</strong> It was hard for the cast and crew to have faith early on. During the first season, NBC executives <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/05/arts/television/the-office-finale.html?pagewanted=all" target="_blank">would</a> show up on set, bringing a lot of pessimism. According to John Krasinski, they would say things like, “This episode is so good—unfortunately, it’s the last one we’re going to do.”</p>
<p><strong>8.</strong> One thing that <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/05/arts/television/the-office-finale.html?pagewanted=all" target="_blank">helped</a> save the show was iTunes. Around the second season, when NBC made the show available on the platform, it took up four of the top five slots for downloaded television shows. That’s when the people behind the show learned that their audience skewed young, rather than the white-collar workers they thought would be watching.</p>
<p><strong>9.</strong> The Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin is located at 1725 Slough Avenue. That’s not a real street in the actual Scranton, Pennsylvania, though—it’s a reference to the original version of the show, which takes place in Slough, England.</p>
<p><strong>10.</strong> The computers on set really <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/gallery/office-scenes-203953#5-leslie-david-baker" target="_blank">worked</a>. They even had Internet, which helped the cast feel like they were in a real-life office.</p>
<p><strong>11.</strong> In the season two episode “Performance Review,” Michael reads papers from his suggestion box, including one from “Tom,” who wrote, “We need better outreach for employees fighting depression.” Then, he’s reminded that Tom killed himself. During a 2007 Office Convention, a group of writers <a href="http://theoffice.wikia.com/wiki/Mentioned_Characters#Tom_Peets" target="_blank">proposed</a> that this suicide was why the documentary crew showed up in Scranton. They wanted to document how the office was dealing with the suicide before turning to simpler storylines.</p>
<p><strong>12.</strong> Steve Carell <a href="http://www.avclub.com/article/oscar-nunez-14312" target="_blank">improvised</a> his kiss with Oscar Nunez in the season three episode, “Gay Witch Hunt.” The script only called for a hug. Nunez recalled, “We were just supposed to hug, and he kept hugging me. And that particular take he came in really close, and I'm like, ‘Where is he going with this?’ Oh, dear, yes here we go.”</p>
<p><strong>13.</strong> The actors weren’t the only ones who could improvise at any moment. In season five, Pam closes her dorm door on a camera person, who lets out an audible sigh. That <a href="http://www.officetally.com/gene-stupnitsky-answers-weight-loss-questions/2" target="_blank">was</a> an impromptu moment from the director of photography, Randall Einhorn.</p>
<p><strong>14.</strong> The writers <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/24/AR2008102400864.html" target="_blank">had</a> a clear vision for how Jim’s proposal to Pam would look. They wanted to shoot it at an actual rest stop on the Merritt Parkway, but it would have cost $100,000. Plus, they wouldn’t be allowed to use fake rain, which was important to the scene. So, the crew built a replica of the Parkway and a rest stop. The shot ended up costing $250,000. Daniels described the scene as “the most expensive and elaborate shot we've ever done, but it's also sort of the highlight of five years of storytelling.”</p>
<p><strong>15.</strong> In 2011, the company Quill.com, owned by Staples, <a href="http://business.time.com/2013/05/16/after-the-office-dunder-mifflin-will-live-on-in-every-office/" target="_blank">announced</a> that they would start selling Dunder Mifflin paper. At the time, their director of innovation explained, “Paper…is a race to the bottom as paper usage is going down. We’re looking for different pop culture phenomena and external brands that we can tie to these mundane product categories to differentiate. That’s really how initially pairing copy paper and Dunder Mifflin came about.”</p>
<p><strong>16.</strong> When Steve Carell <a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/office-oral-history-steve-carell-exit-1065648.aspx" target="_blank">left</a> the show after seven seasons, he was still adored by the cast and crew. Up until that point, he had always been number one on the call sheet. So, when he left, they “retired” the number one, and it didn’t appear on the call sheet again.</p>
<p><strong>17.</strong> Andy became manager in the final two seasons <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2011/09/the_office_showrunner_paul_lie.html" target="_blank">because</a> he was a people person. Lieberstein, who was showrunner at the time, said, “The Andy character is very different from Michael, but one of the things they have in common is that they both put people first and relationships first.” The writers also considered promoting Darryl, but decided that he was “too rational and smart to be the manager,” so he couldn’t cause as many disasters.</p>
<p><strong>18.</strong> James Spader <a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-office-showrunner-is-prepared-223274" target="_blank">was</a> originally only supposed do a cameo in the seventh season finale, but the writers liked him so much that they asked him to expand the role.</p>
<p><strong>19.</strong> The showrunners <a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/04/18/office-creator-greg-daniels-finale-reflections-steve-carrell/" target="_blank">didn't</a> tell network executives that Steve Carrell was going to appear in the finale. According to Daniels, “We shot the Steve stuff and we kept it out of the dailies and didn’t tell them about it. At the table reading, we gave the Steve Carell lines to Creed.”</p>
<p><strong>20.</strong> After the show ended, Dwight <a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/office-oral-history-steve-carell-exit-1065648.aspx" target="_blank">was</a> supposed to get a spinoff called <em>The Farm </em>on NBC, but the network passed on the show in 2012. According to Rainn Wilson, “The timing was wrong.”</p>
<p><strong>21.</strong> Although <em>The Farm</em> never happened, and neither did a proposed Andy Bernard show based on<em> An American Family</em>, you can view <em>Parks and Recreation</em> as a kind of spinoff. It was developed by the same producers and was originally going to be a spinoff before Rashida Jones got cast after playing a separate character on <em>The Office</em>.</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">January 2, 2015 - 5:00pm</span></span>
</span>Fri, 02 Jan 2015 22:00:00 +0000Hannah60370 at http://mentalfloss.com22 Things You Might Not Know About 'Gilmore Girls'http://mentalfloss.com/article/60420/22-things-you-might-not-know-about-gilmore-girls
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/tv" class="author-writes-about-link">tv</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/457669487349.png" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>warner bros</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><em>Gilmore Girls</em>, which featured a young mother-daughter pair who lived in a small town where everyone seemed to talk a mile a minute, began airing on the WB in 2000. Seven years of pop culture references and family drama later, it finished its run on The CW. Here are 22 things you might not know about the show.</p>
<h4>1. The show was inspired by a trip that creator Amy Sherman-Palladino was on.</h4>
<p>The trip <a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/826981/Visit-to-tiny-town-led-to-show-idea.html" target="_blank">took her through</a> the small town of Washington, Connecticut, where she stayed at an inn. “We're driving by, and people are slowing down saying, 'Excuse me, where is the pumpkin patch?'" she recalled. "And everything is green and people are out, and they're talking. And we went to a diner and everyone knew each other and someone got up and they walked behind the [counter] and they got their own coffee because the waitress was busy.” Within 24 hours, she had worked out the show and written some of the pilot's dialogue.</p>
<h4>2. Alex Borstein was originally cast as Sookie.</h4>
<p>She had to turn down the role due to her work on <em>MadTV</em>. She ended up making a few appearances as the harpist Drella, though. Borstein is also married to Jackson Douglas, who ended up playing the Jackson that dated Sookie on the show.</p>
<h4>3. Liza Weil, who played Paris, <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/emilyorley/liza-weil-how-to-get-away-with-murder" target="_blank">originally</a> auditioned for the part of Rory.</h4>
<p>She was told that if the show got picked up, Amy Sherman-Palladino had an idea for a part that she wanted to write specifically for Weil. She struggled with the part at first, <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/emilyorley/liza-weil-how-to-get-away-with-murder" target="_blank">saying</a>, it “was scary to be a judgmental, mean girl.”</p>
<h4>4. Alexis Bledel <a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,197068,00.html" target="_blank">had</a> never acted before she got cast.</h4>
<p>Before she played Rory, Bledel's only role was as an uncredited extra in Wes Anderson's <em>Rushmore</em>. She was a student at NYU who was modeling part-time when she decided to try her luck and audition for the show. Other jobs she was applying for at the time: waitress and census-taker.</p>
<h4>5. Keiko Agena, who played Lane, was 27 when the show premiered.</h4>
<p>That makes her a mere six years younger than Lauren Graham (Lorelai), though their characters had a 16 year age difference.</p>
<h4>6. The score was composed by famous songwriter Sam Phillips.</h4>
<p>It <a href="http://www.outsmartmagazine.com/2010/01/once-in-love-with-amy-always-in-love-with-amy/" target="_blank">was</a> Sherman-Palladino’s husband and co-producer, Daniel Palladino, who thought to approach Phillips. The Palladinos had used some of her songs as placeholders in the pilot before it went to air. So they decided to contact Phillips, who accepted.</p>
<h4>7. One of the show’s hallmarks was fast-talking.</h4>
<p>The production had to completely adjust to accommodate this style of dialogue. Normally, one page of a screenplay accounts for one minute of screen time. But for <em>Gilmore Girls</em> scripts, a page <a href="http://faculty.georgetown.edu/tannend/catchthat.html" target="_blank">was</a> about 20 to 25 seconds. There were also fewer close ups than on shows with regular pacing, and they often re-shot scenes to lose a mere few seconds of time.</p>
<h4>8. The cast didn’t always understand the pop culture references, but they went with it.</h4>
<p>Bledel <a href="http://popwatch.ew.com/2010/10/21/ew-reunions-gilmore-girls-lauren-graham-alexis-bledel/" target="_blank">told Entertainment Weekly </a> that “We’d have to look them up on our own typically. There were no explanations written in the script.” Graham recalled Bledel asking her who The Waltons were and thinking, “I’m so old.”</p>
<h4>9. In the first season finale, Lorelai received 1000 yellow daisies as part of a marriage proposal.</h4>
<p>But the shot required many more flowers than that. “A thousand yellow daisies actually sounds like a lot," <span>Sherman-Palladino <a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/10/21/gilmore-girls-thousand-yellow-daisies/" target="_blank">told <em>EW</em></a>,"but when you put a thousand yellow daisies in a big room, like our set, it’s kind of like a table arrangement. Three or four times we had to send people back to get yellow daisies. I think we wiped out yellow daisies on the West Coast.”</span></p>
<h4>10. Chilton student Brad Langford disappeared toward the end of season two through much of season three.</h4>
<p>His character explained his absence by saying that he had been starring in <em>Into the Woods </em>on Broadway. It turns out that wasn’t much of a stretch—A<span>dam Wylie,</span> who played Brad, actually <em>had </em>been starring in that show during that time.</p>
<h4>11. Sherman-Palladino <a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,197068_2,00.html" target="_blank">wrote</a> Jess onto the show so that Lorelai and Luke had yet another reason to not date yet.</h4>
<p>“We're dealing with two people who, if they just opened their eyes and stared across the table at each other, would go, 'Oh sh--, it's you," she said. "So when you're playing that game, you have to find obstacles that are real to put in their way.'”</p>
<h4>12. One season after Jess first appeared on the show, there was talk of a spinoff for his character.</h4>
<p>The third season episode “Here Comes the Son” was a kind of pilot for the show, which would have been called <em>Windward Circle</em>. But the WB found that it was too expensive to shoot in Venice Beach, where the show would have taken place.</p>
<h4>13. Graham’s favorite scenes to shoot were the Friday Night Dinners.</h4>
<p>Especially when they involved Kelly Bishop, who played Emily, arguing with her. But the shoots were long, involving multiple camera angles, and, she <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/21/showbiz/gilmore-girls-lauren-graham/" target="_blank">said</a>, “The food was always terrible.”</p>
<h4>14. In season five, Norman Mailer made a cameo for the episode, “Norman Mailer, I’m Pregnant!”</h4>
<p>Originally, the script just called for a well-known author. They asked Mailer, who initially <a href="http://nymag.com/nymetro/arts/tv/10178/" target="_blank">said</a> no until the show asked his son to take a part as well. According to Mailer, “I told them I couldn’t memorize any lines; it had to be improvisation. The hard part was having to repeat things over and over.”</p>
<h4>15. Another unexpected star on <em>Gilmore Girls</em>: Sebastian Bach of Skid Row.</h4>
<p>He played Lane’s bandmate, Gil. How’d he get the gig? He <a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/super-qa-sebastian-37939.aspx" target="_blank">said</a>, “When I got the call, I was like, ‘Do you guys have the right phone number?’ They wanted a ‘rock star’ to [play] the guitar player [in Lane's band] and [the casting director saw me on] VH1's <em>I Love the '70s</em>.”</p>
<h4>16. In 2006, Sherman-Palladino and Palladino announced that they would not return to the show for season seven.</h4>
<p>They released a statement that <a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/team-palladino-says-8524.aspx" target="_blank">said</a>, “Despite our best efforts to return and ensure the future of <em>Gilmore Girls</em> for years to come, we were unable to reach an agreement with the studio and are therefore leaving when our contracts expire at the end of this season." Later, Sherman-Palladino would explain that she was particularly frustrated by The CW network not allowing the pair to hire more writers.</p>
<h4>17. David Rosenthal <a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/Finally-Gilmores-New-8380.aspx" target="_blank">took</a> over as executive producer in the final season.</h4>
<p>Of the new gig, he <a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/Finally-Gilmores-New-8380.aspx" target="_blank">said</a>, “I spent a terrific year last year working with Amy and Dan, and she was incredibly supportive, and she told me from the beginning that this was a distinct possibility that she would be moving on and I would be running the show. When she brought me in at the beginning of last year, that's one of the things she told me. She brought me in as an executive producer for that reason.”</p>
<h4>18. Graham was also given a producer role in the final season.</h4>
<p><a href="http://www.tvguide.com/news/exclusive-qa-gilmore-8348.aspx" target="_blank">According to</a> Scott Patterson, who played Luke, there was a very different vibe on set after Sherman-Palladino left. He said, “There was a little more leeway in how things were shaped. The actors had more input than in the previous six years.”</p>
<h4>19. Graham <a href="http://www.crushable.com/2007/05/06/entertainment/lauren-graham-interview-on-end-of-gilmore-girls/" target="_blank">requested</a> that changes be made to the series finale script.</h4>
<p>She thought the episode was “too light.” Rosenthal listened to her and found a way to give more characters a moment to shine.</p>
<h4>20. After it was clear that the show wasn’t going to continue beyond season seven, a spinoff with Rory <a href="http://www.crushable.com/2007/05/06/entertainment/lauren-graham-interview-on-end-of-gilmore-girls/" target="_blank">was</a> considered.</h4>
<p>Graham had officially told the producers that she would not be returning, but discussed the possibility of producing a show about Rory. Eventually, they deemed the whole thing too complicated.</p>
<h4>21. Sherman-Palladino has her own ideas for how the Gilmore story was supposed to end.</h4>
<p>In 2009, she <a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2009/11/16/gilmore-boss-had-different-plan-rory/" target="_blank">told</a> <em>Entertainment Weekly</em>, “I wanted different things for Rory. I wanted her to follow a different sort of path… [go] off on her own adventure, which I guess she sort of did. I haven’t [actually] seen the last season, but I heard about it from other people.”</p>
<h4>22. Sherman-Palladino had four words planned for the final words of the show.</h4>
<p>But she still hasn’t revealed those words. She has <a href="http://www.vulture.com/2012/06/amy-sherman-palladino-on-gilmore-girls-new-show.html" target="_blank">said</a>, “I feel like now I’ll let people down because it’s been so built up. ‘Really? That’s what we waited all these twelve years for? Well, thanks so much.’”</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">December 9, 2014 - 8:00am</span></span>
</span>Tue, 09 Dec 2014 13:00:00 +0000Rebecca OConnell60420 at http://mentalfloss.com11 Amusement Park Secrets From People Who Work Therehttp://mentalfloss.com/article/59850/11-amusement-park-secrets-people-who-work-there
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/11" class="author-writes-about-link">11</a>, <a href="/section/lists" class="author-writes-about-link">Lists</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/59876383.png" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Getty Images</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Thanks to Reddit AMAs, or “Ask Me Anything,” we now know more about the behind-the-scenes of amusement parks than ever before. Here are 11 facts about working at an amusement park, straight from actual employees. </p>
<h4>1. Disney princesses have to be creative liars.</h4>
<p>In order to be a “face character” (not in a full-body costume), you have to be pretty quick on your feet. One cast member who <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2ehtte/i_worked_as_various_princesses_at_walt_disney/cjzpu4u" target="_blank">was</a> Mulan had children try to speak to her in Chinese on occasion. She would respond, “I bet Mushu if I could go an entire day without speaking Chinese, he'd feed the chickens for me tomorrow.” The same woman also played Silvermist the fairy. When kids asked her to fly, she would <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2ehtte/i_worked_as_various_princesses_at_walt_disney/cjzp9y6" target="_blank">say</a>, “I’m saving my pixie dust for later.”</p>
<h4>2. There are no special roads to get into Disney World, but there is a special parking lot.</h4>
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<p>Disney employees <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/24y91y/iama_former_walt_disney_world_cast_member_ama/chbtxpp" target="_blank">have</a> to enter the park with everyone else. They show an ID to the attendants to get in for free. But they do have their own “HUGE” Cast Member parking lot that shuttles them to the underground behind-the-scenes area. </p>
<h4>3. The rides are checked every day. </h4>
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<p>The Six Flags Rides Department <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/16i97m/i_am_a_six_flags_employee_ama/c7wa9oe" target="_blank">has</a> employees who ride the attractions every day, and maintenance happens every day too. <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/16i97m/i_am_a_six_flags_employee_ama/c7wa2vw" target="_blank">According to</a> one employee, “The maintenance on the rides is required every day before any operation or person is allowed to ride. They will inspect tracks, ride units, safety systems, and ride operation thoroughly before handing it over to any operations team.” Another anonymous ride operator at an unnamed amusement park <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1jlthp/iama_ride_operator_at_an_amusement_park_ama/cbg2d6k" target="_blank">confirmed</a> that their company’s employees do that too. </p>
<p><strong>More:</strong> <a href="http://mentalfloss.com/article/57543/8-things-will-get-you-banned-six-flags">8 Things That Will Get You Banned From Six Flags</a></p>
<h4>4. They don’t have to deal with puke THAT often. </h4>
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<p>One former Six Flags employee <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/24yoa0/iama_former_six_flags_magic_mountain_employee_ama/chby5p3" target="_blank">explained</a>, “People don’t throw up nearly as much as you would expect...I worked a majority of my time at a ride called Wonder Woman’s Lasso of Truth: a spinning wheel that raises and tilts with the guest against the wall. Couple people threw up.” A former Disney World janitor also <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/24y91y/iama_former_walt_disney_world_cast_member_ama/chbubst" target="_blank">wrote</a> that he didn’t have to clean up puke “as much as you would think.” </p>
<h4>5. Ride operators have to listen to the same songs over and over again. </h4>
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<p>A former ride operator at Cedar Point’s Top Thrill Dragster roller coaster <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1urglf/iama_former_top_thrill_dragster_operator_at_cedar/cekzjxs" target="_blank">had</a> to listen to the song “Ready to Go” on repeat every day. Apparently the park’s management sometimes asked employees for song requests, but never actually played the songs.</p>
<h4>6. People ask if they’re going to die on rides a lot.</h4>
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<p>When it opened in 2003, the Top Thrill Dragster was the tallest roller coaster in the world at 420 feet, and its ride operator <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1urglf/iama_former_top_thrill_dragster_operator_at_cedar/cel1gui" target="_blank">dealt</a> with terrified riders every day who asked, “Am I gonna die?” Their go-to reassurance was that the ride was “certainly safer than their shower/bathtub and their car.”</p>
<p><strong>More:</strong> <a href="http://mentalfloss.com/article/57824/17-horrifying-vintage-pictures-disneyland-characters">17 Horrifying Vintage Pictures of Disneyland Characters</a></p>
<h4>7. They are not allowed to talk to people who threaten to sue. </h4>
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<p>One redditor <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/gp4yv/i_work_at_six_flags_ama/c1p8gei" target="_blank">asked</a> a Six Flags employee, “When working in Customer Service how many people would come complaining about ‘fake’ injuries they had sustained on rides and talked about suing?” Apparently, that’s not a good strategy to get what you want. When someone threatens to sue at Six Flags, the employee has to stop talking to that person and call security immediately.</p>
<h4>8. They are required to carry water with them at Disney World. </h4>
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<p>It’s hard to not sympathize with employees working outside during hot Florida summers. But at least we know they’re hydrated: The former janitor <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/24y91y/iama_former_walt_disney_world_cast_member_ama/chbwziw" target="_blank">wrote</a>, “They actually require you to have a water bottle with you since it can be so hot down there.” </p>
<h4>9. Photographers have their pictures taken too. </h4>
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<p>A front gate photographer at King’s Island was <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/qx30o/iama_front_gate_photographer_at_kings_island_a/c417j2j" target="_blank">asked</a>, “Have you ever had anyone ask to take your picture instead?” The photographer responded, “Yes. At least once a day.”</p>
<h4>10. Disney Princesses do their own makeup.</h4>
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<p>Each character <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2ehtte/i_worked_as_various_princesses_at_walt_disney/cjzpr34" target="_blank">has</a> a precise makeup routine with a distinct profile and colors. The actors learn how to do their own makeup in training.</p>
<p><strong>More:</strong> <a href="http://mentalfloss.com/article/59251/11-wonderful-former-disney-rides">11 Defunct Disney Rides and Attractions</a></p>
<h4>11. People who work at Disney World the longest have more input on their job. </h4>
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<p><a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2hd8ia/iama_former_walt_disney_world_cast_member_ama/cks5tmo" target="_blank">According to</a> a former cast member, “There is a bit of a hierarchy with the people who have been there the longest. Twice a year (I think) they do something called bids where they can request where they want to work. For example, if you play Belle you may have a preference to work in MK, Epcot, or one of the restaurants. The longer you have been there the higher you are on the list so you have a better chance of getting what you want. Around bid time you will hear all the performers talking about who is higher on the list and who bid what locations.”</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">November 11, 2014 - 2:11pm</span></span>
</span>Tue, 11 Nov 2014 19:11:40 +0000Rebecca OConnell59850 at http://mentalfloss.comThe 10 Best Rest Stops in the U.S.http://mentalfloss.com/article/59844/10-best-rest-stops-us
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/travel" class="author-writes-about-link">travel</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/800px-iowa80_0.png" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>wikimedia commons</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Nothing ruins a road trip like dingy rest stop that makes everyone itch for a shower. Inversely, could a great rest stop save a road trip? These are 10 of the best rest stops and truck stops that can be found in the U.S.</p>
<h4>1. The Iowa 80 Truck Stop</h4>
<p>The world’s largest truck stop <a target="_blank" href="http://iowa80truckstop.com/">can be found off of I-80</a>, on exit 284 in Walcott, Iowa. This stop has pretty much anything a road tripper might need. In addition to plenty of fast food restaurants, there’s a movie theatre, laundromat, showers, a trucking museum, and church services on Sundays. The 100,000 square foot stop currently <a target="_blank" href="http://iowa80truckstop.com/about-iowa-80/fun-facts/">sees around 5,000 people</a> per day.</p>
<h4>2. South of the Border</h4>
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<p>This stop <a target="_blank" href="http://www.thesouthoftheborder.com/contact-us/">is located off of I-95</a> in Dillon, South Carolina. Here, you can find six different restaurants, ranging from casual dining to a steakhouse. The Border, as it’s known for short, also has the largest indoor reptile exhibit in the United States, which is open every day. Plus, there’s Pedroland, an amusement park with a ferris wheel, carousel, bumper cards, mini golf, and an arcade. There’s also an inn and a campground if you need to stay the night.</p>
<h4>3. Buc-ee’s</h4>
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<p>This chain is a Texas staple, with <a target="_blank" href="http://www.buc-ees.com/locations.php">twenty-two</a> locations in the state. They feature convenience stores with huge restrooms, tons of gas pumps, and delis. The New Braunfels location <a target="_blank" href="http://www.bestrestroom.com/us/hall_of_fame/2012/default.asp">won Cintas’ 2012 America’s Best Restroom Award</a>. The store is 68,000 square feet with 80 soda fountains and conveniently contains a total of 83 bathroom stalls.</p>
<h4>4. Little America </h4>
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At first glance, Little America (at Exit 198 off of I-40 in Flagstaff, Arizona) doesn’t even look like a rest stop. It’s a gorgeous 500-acre hotel with a golf course, swimming pool, fitness center, and business center. There’s also a travel center on the property with a gas station, and the convenience store <a target="_blank" href="http://flagstaff.littleamerica.com/travel-center/convenience-store">is open 24/7</a>, fully stocked with books, groceries, CDs, DVDs, and souvenirs. Plus, there’s the Little America Grill, which <a target="_blank" href="http://flagstaff.littleamerica.com/travel-center/little-america-grill">serves everything</a> from rotisserie chicken to breakfast foods to 50 cent ice cream cones. It’s open until at least 10:30 every day.</p>
<h4>5. R-Place Restaurant</h4>
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<p>If you’re hungry while passing Morris, Illinois on I-80, this is the place to stop. R-Place is a 24/7 eatery that serves baked goods and American cuisine. It also has its own food challenge! The restaurant serves a 2-pound hamburger—half of which is meat and the other half is cheese, bun, and two toppings of your choice. To win, you must eat the entire thing within one hour without leaving the table. R-Place's food is so popular, they even cater.</p>
<h4>6. Sapp Bros </h4>
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<p><a target="_blank" p="54" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/miguelvaca/" class="owner-name truncate" title="Go to Miguel Vaca's photostream" data-track="attributionNameClick">Miguel Vaca</a>, Flickr</p>
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<p>While travelling on I-80, you might come across a Sapp Bros. Travel Center. There <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sappbros.net/corporate/#corp-about">are sixteen locations</a> between Salt Lake City, Utah and Clearfield, Pennsylvania. In addition to being a rest stop, the company also <a target="_blank" href="http://www.sappbros.net/travel-centers/service-centers/">provides 24-hour roadside service</a>. Six Sapp Bros. locations have their most popular restaurant, Apple Barrel, which serves reasonably priced American cuisine.</p>
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<h4>7. Tamarack Tourist Information Center</h4>
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<p>Tamarack <a target="_blank" href="http://www.tamarackwv.com/what-we-are/directions.html">is located on Exit 45 off of I-77 and I-64</a> in Beckley, West Virginia. It has a standard food court and provides tourist information, but it also contains a fine arts gallery, a theater with live performances, a conference center, and stores selling local products. Half a million people stop at the center every year.</p>
<h4>8. Jubitz Truck Stop and Travel Center</h4>
<p>This stop, which FOX Travel Channel named the “<a target="_blank" href="http://www.jubitztravelcenter.com/">World’s Classiest Truck Stop</a>,” can be found off of I-5 in Portland, Oregon. The Portlander Inn is on the property with 100 rooms for those who are too tired to keep driving. For quicker visits, there’s a restaurant, convenience store, and 80-seat movie theater. Jubitz also has the Ponderosa Lounge with pool tables, TVs, dance lessons, video poker, and live music on weekends.</p>
<h4>9. Bear Lake Rest Area and Overlook</h4>
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<p>According to The Travel Channel, this <a target="_blank" href="http://www.travelchannel.com/interests/road-trips/articles/best-road-trip-rest-areas">is the rest stop with the best view</a> in the U.S. It is located off of Route 89 in Bear Lake, Utah, and it <a target="_blank" href="http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMC10W_Bear_Lake_Rest_Area_Overlook_Bear_Lake_Utah_USA">provides a great spot</a> to check out Bear Lake and its surrounding mountains. Plus, there’s a hiking trail for those who want to see a little more. (Of course, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMC10W_Bear_Lake_Rest_Area_Overlook_Bear_Lake_Utah_USA">there's</a> also parking and bathrooms.)</p>
<h4>10. Trail’s Travel Center</h4>
<p>This center is off of I-35 in Albert Lea, Minnesota. In addition to a couple of fast food restaurants, there is a restaurant and a tavern with the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.trailstravelcenter.com/skol-tavern/">largest whiskey selection</a> in southern Minnesota. Truck drivers who stop there can find a movie theater, wi-fi, and church services on Sundays.</p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">November 4, 2014 - 6:00pm</span></span>
</span>Wed, 05 Nov 2014 02:00:00 +0000Rebecca OConnell59844 at http://mentalfloss.com10 Delicious Hot Chocolate Mix-Inshttp://mentalfloss.com/article/59842/10-delicious-hot-chocolate-mix-ins
<div class="field-group-format group_meta field-group-div group-meta speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-enhanced-authors field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/authors/meredith-danko">Meredith Danko</a></div></div></div><div class="field-group-format group_categories field-group-div group-categories categories speed-none effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-category-url field-type-computed field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">filed under: <a href="/section/food" class="author-writes-about-link">Food</a></div></div></div></div></div><div class="primary-image">
<img src="http://images.mentalfloss.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_640x430/public/istock_000031204132_small.jpg" width="640" height="430" alt="" /> </div><div class="field-group-format group_image_credit field-group-div group-image-credit speed-fast effect-none"><div class="field field-name-field-image-credit field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Image credit:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>istock</p>
</div></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p>Winter is coming! Which means it’s hot chocolate season. If you’re tired of boring old hot chocolate with marshmallows, here are 10 different ingredients you can add to the saucepan to change it up.</p>
<h4>1. Peanut Butter</h4>
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<p>If Halloween last week reminded you just how well peanut butter and chocolate go together, then this one is for you. In <a target="_blank" href="http://oneordinaryday.wordpress.com/2011/01/01/salted-peanut-butter-hot-chocolate/">this recipe</a>, you add a few dollops of regular, creamy peanut butter right into your saucepan along with the chocolate.</p>
<h4>2. Nutella</h4>
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<p>For a hazelnut flavor, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.marthastewart.com/1047475/nutella-hot-chocolate">mix some nutella</a> into the saucepan. This one goes best with a whipped cream garnish.</p>
<h4>3. Maple Syrup</h4>
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<p>For a New England twist on cocoa, <a target="_blank" href="http://www.food.com/recipe/hot-chocolate-with-skim-milk-cocoa-powder-and-maple-syrup-340328">add a couple teaspoons of maple syrup</a>. If you need an extra kick, a couple pinches of nutmeg will do.</p>
<h4>4. Cinnamon</h4>
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<p>A mere <a target="_blank" href="http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/cinnamon-hot-chocolate/67f9c15b-61f5-44d9-ac82-4993ffbf71d1">teaspoon of cinnamon</a> in a saucepan of hot chocolate is all it takes to create a delicious mix of cinnamon hot chocolate.</p>
<h4>5. Oreos</h4>
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<p>You’ll need a food processor or blender to <a target="_blank" href="http://therecipecritic.com/2012/12/cookies-and-cream-hot-chocolate/">chop up around four oreos</a> until they are the texture of sugar. Add it to the hot chocolate mix, then top with whipped cream and more crushed oreos.</p>
<h4>6. Peppermint</h4>
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<p>For a batch of peppermint hot chocolate, all it takes is <a target="_blank" href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/peppermint-hot-chocolate-recipe.html">three drops of peppermint oil</a> and a pinch of salt.</p>
<h4>7. Ginger</h4>
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<p>To make hot cocoa taste like gingerbread, add <a target="_blank" href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/gingerbread-hot-chocolate">one piece of ginger</a>, ten cloves, and two cinnamon sticks while cooking.</p>
<h4>8. Chili Powder</h4>
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<p>If you really want to spice up the beverage, whip up a batch of <a target="_blank" href="http://allrecipes.com/recipe/easy-mexican-hot-chocolate/">Mexican hot chocolate</a>. This includes a little bit of ground cinnamon and a pinch of chili powder.</p>
<h4>9. Booze</h4>
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<p>There are so many different types of alcohol that go well in hot chocolate. Some options include brandy, Kahlua, peppermint schnapps, raspberry liqueur, tequila, amaretto, and Bailey’s Irish Creme.</p>
<h4>10. Cherry</h4>
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<p>For a full batch of hot chocolate to taste like cherry, it takes a <a target="_blank" href="http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/cherry-cordial-hot-chocolate">few tablespoons of maraschino cherry juice</a>.</p>
<p><em>All images courtesy of iStock.</em></p>
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<span class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">November 4, 2014 - 8:22am</span></span>
</span>Tue, 04 Nov 2014 13:15:34 +0000Rebecca OConnell59842 at http://mentalfloss.com